Implement Street Vendors Act, demands Cong

Claiming rise in cases involving harassment of hawkers in Delhi, Congress today demanded AAP Government to "immediately" implement Street Vendors Act passed by UPA-II over a year ago.

"AAP claims corruption cases had gone down during its previous 49-day tenure. Now, we hear that vendors are being fleeced more than what it used to be earlier. This is because the Act is not being implemented in Delhi. Vendors are being harassed. Money is being recovered from them. Police, corporation is fleecing them. Our demand is the Act should be implemented immediately in Delhi," said Delhi Congress chief Ajay Maken

The Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014, passed on March 3, 2014, allows issuing vending certificates/licenses up to a number equivalent to 2.5 percent of a city's population. That is, according to the Act, Delhi can accommodate 5 lakh vendors for its population of around two crore.

Congress claimed that not a single vending certificate has been issued till date.

"Not a single certificate has been issued. Nowhere town vending committees have been formed in line with the Act. Both the governments (of AAP and BJP) are responsible (for this).

We will stage protest if the scheme is not notified within two weeks in Delhi," Maken said.

Maken added that the Congress will also write to Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung and Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal over implementing the law.

He informed the Act has already been brought in force by Congress or party-backed governments in Bihar, Uttarakhand and Karnataka.